Friday, April 29, 2011

A big bunch of spinach came in our box this week. Spinach is a popular vegetable in our house, not only because it tastes good, but because it is a great source of vitamins, iron and calcium. I also like how versatile it is. It is great tossed in a salad, aloo palak or in our favorite recipe of spanakopita. This low fat spanakopita strudel recipe is next on my list to try.

I love sugar snap peas and was excited to find some in our box. They make a great snack and are easy to wash and take along with you. It is hard to go wrong when you fry them up on their own or in a stirfry with broccoli. If you prefer they can also be steamed. I plan to make this spicy Asian roasted broccoli and snap peas dish I discovered.

Broccoli, like the other green vegetables in this week's box, is high in Vitamin C and dietary fiber. Broccoli on its own makes for a great side dish. It would be great served with garlic butter and cashews or with Parmesan and lemon. With the weather warming up, broccoli is also a great base for salads, like this broccoli and bacon salad.

Since starting with Life Organic we have made some great recipes with carrots. Two favorites are this carrot cake and these carrot fritters. I am always looking for new recipes though. This week I am thinking of trying carrot halwa or candied carrots. These root vegetables are rich in anti-oxidants, vitamins and dietary fiber.

Friday, April 15, 2011

This week's box offered some great fruit for snacking, like a bag of Pink Lady apples, navel oranges and Bartlett pears. The fruit would also be lovely tossed with the lettuce, cucumber and avocado we got. Maybe in a balsamic vinaigrette dressing for a fabulous spring salad.

Avocados and mangoes also make for a great salad combination. You could also serve them together with pork chops or salmon. Add a tomato and some black beans and you have a southwestern tasty meal-sized salad! Avocados are a great fruit for snacking or in dishes due to their high potassium content (they have more than bananas!) and are also rich in vitamin B, E and K.

I have come to love all forms of greens, like kale, spinach and Swiss chard but I'm not as familiar with collard greens. Considered a staple vegetable in the Southern United States, where it is often served with ham, it can also be substituted for other greens in your favorite recipe. Spanakopita with collard greens maybe? Collard greens would be great served with the potatoes that came in the box this week or in a lentil soup.

Rutabagas are a turnip cousin. Low in calories, they are also a good source of Vitamin C , folacin and fibre. Often served as a side dish, they can easily be prepared as a mash similar to mashed potatoes. Rutabagas can also be roasted and boiled. You could even try them in smashed potato and parsnips or stew.

Do you have any favorite recipes I should try? Brie loves eating food and is learning to love cooking food. She also blogs about motherhood at Capital Mom and about Ottawa with kids at Kids in the Capital.

Monday, April 11, 2011

Our box this week had four lovely small yams. I love yams for how versatile they are. You can throw them in chili or soup for added colour and flavour. My four year old's favorite way to eat them is baked with a little butter and brown sugar. She will happily eat them with a spoon! I have no problem with her eating two or three for dinner, as she has been known to do, because they are a good source of vitamins C and B, potassium, manganese and are low in saturated fat and sodium. Plus they taste good!

I was pleased to see some garlic in our box. I love garlic. I would be happy to just fry it up in some olive oil and eat it over pasta. But as a great cold cure, and we have a cold sneaking into the house right now, it will be the perfect base for roasted garlic and onion soup and mushroom soup with parsley and garlic. Those two soups are also a great way to use the bag of yellow onions and box of mushrooms we received this week.

The fruit we received this week, a grapefruit, a kiwi, pears and oranges are all a great source of Vitamin C. A bunch of yellow bananas were perfectly ripe and are great for snacking or trying flambed. The mango is a wonderful treat, and once you know how to cut it properly, easy to eat. Fabulous to eat on their own, these fruit would make an excellent fruit salad tossed together or a sweet addition to a lettuce salad.

These are some of the ideas on my menu plan this week. What are you cooking?

Brie loves eating food and is learning to love cooking food. She also blogs about motherhood at Capital Mom and about Ottawa with kids at Kids in the Capital.

Friday, April 1, 2011

You would not believe how excited I was to get this week's box. With no box last week I was forced to confront exactly how dependent I have become on it for my meal planning. I was at a bit of a loss as to what to make for dinners last week!

I had visions of baking as soon as I opened the box. The apples, which are perfect for eating whole, using in a Waldorf salad or adding to a grilled cheese sandwich, made me want to bake an apple pie. I am tempted to hide the blueberries from the kids, who will want to sit down and eat the whole container immediately, so that I can try this blueberry tart. When I saw the avocado I knew I wanted to make this chocolate avocado cake/ cupcake recipe. I have heard avocados make for a great cake but I haven't tried it yet.

Carrots are such a great staple to use in dishes. The add flavour and crunch to soups, salads and casseroles. Not to mention anchoring carrot cake. Yum. This week I will be using my carrots to make some carrot fritters. I am excited to try these. The recipe calls for them to be fried but they could probably be baked too.

Welcome to the Life Organic Blog! If you live in the Ottawa area and you're a Life Organic customer, be sure to check in here each week for recipe ideas and information regarding your fresh Harvest Box! And if you're not a Life Organic customer, feel free to browse our delicious recipes.